Pellet gun



June 18, 1963 A. o. DAHLSTROM 3,

PELLET GUN Filed Dec'. 16. 1959 s Sheets-Sheet 1 FEE-.13

, INVENTOR. p gun BARREL CENTER LINE HRv/DQ DHHLSTROM '48 F/ 7' TO RNE Y June 18, 1963 A. o. DAHLSTROM 3,094,112

PELLET GUN Filed Dec. 16. 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 (GUN BARREL CENTER LINE BHLL FEED F L 5.11

,, CENTER LINE TRAJECTORY LINE INVENTOR. HRvmODHHLsTRoM HTTO RNVEY United States atent Arvid The invention relates-to a pellet gun for shooting at a target. Such guns should be accurate in order tomake the hitting of a target a matter of skill. It is an ob ect to construct a pellet gun having a high degree of accuracy.

. Another object is to construct a pellet gun which feeds the pellets rapidly to firing position without affecting the accuracy of the pellet when projected.

Another object is to construct a pellet gun with a simple mechanism for feeding a pellet one at a time to firing position and blocking successive pellets from interfering with the pellet which has been delivered to firing position. I

Another object is to construct a pellet gun which is simple in construction andeasily assembled and yet gives accurate projection of apellet.

A still further object is to construct a pellet gun having a trough support for the pellet to be fired and a hammer construction which secures accurate projection of the pellet. V j

Other objects of the invention will be more apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment thereof in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the gun and FIG. 2. is a top view of the gun;

FIG. 3 is aside view with the cover removed;

FIG. 4 is a section taken on line 44 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a cross section taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 1 or 3 and showing the cover; 7

FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial cross section at firing position;

FIG. 7 is a top view looking at the trough port and the hammer;

FIG. 8 is a view taken on line '88 of FIG. 5 showing the hammer and the operating cams; 7

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 8 but shows the hammer released by the cam;

FIG. 10 is a partialview showing the feeding of a pellet to the pellet supporting means;

0 FIG. 11 is an enlarged view of the hammer and a pellet;

FIG. 12 is a perspective View of the ball feeding and blocking lever; and

FIG. 13 is a diagrammatic view of the trajectory of the pellet-to the target with respect to the sighting of the gun. on the target.

The gun includes an outer casing 20 of any suitable form and having a handle or grip 21. The casing may be molded in plastic and is made in two parts being divided vertically and approximately centrally thereof. The two. parts may be secured together by screws 22. The casing. is. mounted on mounting means which is free to rotate so that a gun may be aimed in a horizontal plane. The mounting means shown includes a mounting. member 24 and a cover member 25 secured thereto by screws 26. This mounting means carries a vertical pivot 27 at the bottom thereof so that the mounting means may bepivoted on a vertical axis. The pivot is pivotally received in a bearing hole carried by a base 28. The mounting means has a slot 29 between the mounting member and the cover member which receives the casing 20. The casing 20* is mounted on a horizontal pivot 30 which its mounting;

pellet supedge inclined surfaces 44 forming a V-groove.

ice

projects. through the casing and is pivotally mounted in a hole 3 1 in' the mounting member 24. Pivot 30 is secured to the plate 41 such as by a drive fit. This horizontal pivot enables the casing and mounting means to be tilted vertically for sighting on a target.

Preferably some frictional resistance is provided in pivoting on the horizontal pivot 30 which may be provided by such friction means as a button 34 received in a hole 35 in the mounting member 24 and pressed against the wall of the casing by a spring 36.

The operating mechanism for the gun is carried by a frame 39 formed of two plates 40 and 41 which are spaced apart by a spacer 42 and the two plates are secured together with the spacer by bolts or screws 43. These bolts are threaded into the casing to secure the frame thereto. The plates carry .at their inner upper These plates are mounted on the casing at an angle such that the V-groove projects at an angle of about 6 degrees with a horizontal line and such line extending from the target. This angle prevents the pellet from rolling forward from the pellet impact position. The horizontal line from the target passes through the sighting axis 45 of the casing. The angle of incline of the V trough from the horizontal is dependent upon the distance of the gun or the pullet from the target. The amount of drop or arcuate path of the pellet is of no significance in the relatively short distance for which this gun was designed. The target is intended to, be about 18 inches from the gun although it may be considerably greater in which event trajectory of the pellet may be and probably would be a factor in sighting of the gun, in fixing the angle of incline, and in selecting a preferred strength of spring. The screws 43 are threaded into the casing 20 to secure the frame 39 and the mechanism carried thereby to the casing.

The pellet is propelled by a hammer which strikes the pellet when it is in impact position in the trough of the supporting means or plates 40, 41. The hammer 48 is preferably pivotally mounted on a pivot 49 carried by the-frame plates 40, 41. The pivot is retained on the frame by providing a circumferential pivot ridge 50 on the pivot which receives the pivot hole or bearing 51 of the hammer. The ridge having a width approximately the same as the spacing between the plates 40 and 41 secures the pivot in position against removal when the plates are assembled together. The hammer has an impact surface 52 spaced from the pivot 49. This impact surface has an angle which is a little greater than 90' degrees from the angle of the V-groove formed by the surfaces 44. The particular angle shown is 45 minutes over 90 degrees from the angle of the V-groove in the direction of pellet flight or project-ion. As a consequence of this angle the pellet immediately leaves the V trough so that its flight is not affected by contact therewith. This slight angle, however, is insufficient to affect the support of the pellet when resting on the surface of the V trough or groove and gives the pellet initial guidance in its flight. As a consequence the pellet is given an accurate projection towards the target without being affected by contact of the pellet with the surfaces with the V trough. The hammer is projected into impact with the pellet P or to the left as shown in FIG. 11 by a spring 53 having one end attached to the hammer at a point spacedfrom the pivot 49 and the other end is anchored to a screw 54 carried by thecasing. The hammer has a cam projection 55 of pointed form to provide a rapid drop-off or immediate release from a cam as will appear.

Means are provided to operate the hammer away from impact. position or pivot the same counterclockwise as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 away from the pellet support and towards pellet impact. The means particularly shown includes a cam 57 mounted on a shaft 58 which passes through the horizontal pivot 30 and projects outwardly from the mounting member 24. The end of the cam shaft 58 is driven from a motor in any suitable manner such as a flexible shaft 59 secured to the shaft by a set screw 62. The cam is received in the space between the frame plates 40 and 41 and the cam surface 60 is on the periphery thereof. The cam surface is of increasing radial dimension to a drop-off 61. The cammay be rotated at any desired speed and 250 r.p.m. has been used. Hammer stop means is provided for the hammer so that the projection 55 does not engage the cam 57. The stop shown includes an arcuate seat 56 carried by the hammer which engages a stop pin carried by the frame.

Pellet feed means is provided to feed pellets one at a time to the pellet support or trough 44. The pellets P are brought to a position above the pellet support position in any suitable manner, that shown including a flexible tube 64, the end of which is secured in a tube collar 65 having a hole in the bottom thereof. .The tube provides a pellet magazine. The collar has a backing projection 66 for the pellet to retain the pellet against rolling down- 'wardly in the inclined trough. The backstop or backing projection 66 also serves as an attaching means for the collar and is received in slots 67 in the plates 40 and 41 and is secured in the slot by screws 68. The backing projection has a slot 69 so that the hammer 57 may pass therethrough to strike the pellet.

The pellet feed means also includes means to feed a pellet one at a time from the magazine or tube 64 to the pellet support or trough. This pellet feeding means includes a pellet feed lever 72 shown in detail in FIG. 12. This lever fits conveniently in a slot 73 in the side of the plate 40. The pellet feed lever is mounted for lateral movement with respect to the trough, the mounting particularly shown being a hole 74 adjacent the bottom of the lever in which is received a mounting screw 75 which is not tightened on the lever so that the lever has freedom for later movement. The pellet feed lever carries a bent lower end 76 which is engaged by a spring 77 to press the upper end of the lever to the right as viewed in FIG. 4. This spring is conveniently received in a hole 78 extending from the bottom edge of the plate 41.

The pellet feed lever has a head 81, which is shown as a bent over end extending over the trough and projecting between the collar 65 and the upper edges of the plates 40, 41 and above a pellet which may be in the trough. This head has a downwardly extending abutment 82 which forms a gap 83 in the head 81. Normally the pellet [feed lever is in pellet feed position as shown in FIG. 6, so that the gap 83 in the head 81 permits the dropping of a pellet into the trough or onto the pellet support. With the lever and the gap 83 of the head in alignment with the opening in the collar 65, a pellet drops onto the pellet support or trough and the abutment 82 with the backing means 69 prevents that pellet from bouncing or shifting forwardly or rear-wardly away from impact or support position.

Means are provided to laterally move the lever to the left or the position as shown in FIG. 4, to bring the head into obstructing position with respect to the pellet feed hole in the collar 65 in timed sequence with the operation of the hammer. This lateral movement of the feed lever is secured by a feed lever cam 86 carried by the face of the hammer cam 57 and spaced peripherally from the drop-01f or drop-01f shoulder 61. This cam is engaged by the cam projection 87 carried by the feed lever 72. As shown in FIG. 8, the lever is moved laterally to remove the gap 83 away from alignment with the feed hole in the collar 65 just as the cam projection 55 on the hammer reaches the drop-off 61. Also as a consequence, the second pellet is prevented from contacting the pellet to be projected in that the head lifts the second pellet upwardly away from the pellet to be projected in the trough. 'Ihis lateral movement of the head of the feed lever also 4- removes the abutment 82 away from the trough and away from the projection path of the pellet. The plates 40 and 41 are provided with a groove 88 at their upper edges to provide clearance for and to permit lateral movement of the abutment.

In operation, a motor is energized by closing of a switch which drives the shaft 58 and the cam 57. In the position of FIG. 10 the pellet feed lever 72 has been pressed by the spring 77 to the right as shown in FIG. 6 so that a pellet drops from the magazine or tube 64 into the V trough or pellet support formed by the surfaces 44. The second pellet of course follows and is shown resting on the bottom or first pellet which is in firing or projection position. Continued rotation of the cam 57 brings it to the position of FIG. 8 where the cam 86 engages the cam projection 87 on the feed lever 72 and presses it to the 'left as shown in FIG. 4. This removes the gap 83 from underneath the open end of the collar 65 and in so doing lifts the second pellet so that it does not contact the pellet in firing position. This movement to the left as viewed in FIG. 4 also removes the abutment 82 from in front of the pellet so that the pellet path is unobstructed. The cam then moves to the position of FIG. 9 where the cam projection 55 reaches the drop-off shoulder 61 of the cam whereupon the spring 53 swings the hammer to the left and the impact surface 52 hits the pellet to project it to the target. The next portion of one revolution of the cam 57 removes the cam 86 from contact with the cam projection 87 and the pellet feed lever so that the spring 77 moves the head of the feed lever to the position shown in FIG. 6 and brings the gap 83 underneath and in alignment with the open end of the collar 65 so that a second pellet drops through the gap onto the pellet support formed by the surface 44 of the trough. The abutment 82 prevents the pellet from moving forwardly although because of the incline of the trough 44 the tendency is for the pellet to remain in contact with the backing projection 66. The pellets particularly used are A ball bearings.

This invention is presented to fill a need for improvements in a pellet gun. It is understood that various modifications in structure, as well as changes in mode of operation, assembly, and manner or use, may and often do occur to those skilled in the art, especially after benefiting from the teachings of an invention. This disclosure illustrates the preferred means of embodying the invention in useful form.

What is claimed is:

1. A pellet gun comprising a casing, mounting means mounting the casing for pivotal movement on at least one of a vertical axis and a horizontal axis, a frame carried by the casing having a pellet support, the pellet support being a trough having straight sides inclined upwardly in the direction of pellet projection, a hammer pivotally mounted on the frame and having an impact surface and movable to and from impact position on the pellet support to hit a pellet; the impact surface having an angle slightly greater than 90 with respect to the forward end of the trough, the impact surface providing the sole means for the direction of flight of the pellet, a backstop carried by the frame to retain the pellet in impact position on the supporting means; operating means connected with the hammer including a spring connected with thehammer and propelling the same to impact position and rotary cam means engaging the hammer to propel the same away from impact position and release the hammer; and feed means to feed one pellet at a time to the pellet support.

2. A pellet gun comprising a casing, mounting means mounting the casing for pivotal movement on at least one of a vertical axis and a horizontal axis, a frame carried by the casing having a pellet support, a hammer pivotally mounted on the frame and having an impact surface and movable to and from impact position on the pellet support to hit a pellet; operating means connected with the hammer including a spring connected with the hammer and propelling the same to impact position, rotary cam means engaging the hammer to propel the same away from impact position and release the hammer, the cam means having a cam on its periphery for engaging the hammer and a side face, pellet feed means to feed one pellet at a time to the pellet support including a lever mounted on the frame for movement laterally of the pellet support, a head carried by the lever located between a pellet magazine and the pellet support to feed a pellet for each lateral movement, and operating means connected with the lever including a feed cam carried by the side face of the cam means and engaging the feed lever.

3. A pellet gun as in claim 2, said pellet magazine being above the pellet support and having an open lower end, and said head extending over the pellet support and above pellet level and underneath the open lower end of the magazine, the head having a gap normally in alignment with the magazine and moved away from alignment therewith by the feed cam.

4. A pellet gun as in claim 3 including a downwardly extending abutment carried by the head forwardly of the gap.

5. A pellet gun as in claim 1 in which the frame includes a pair of spaced plates forming said trough, the hammer being mounted between the spaced plates, and the rotary cam means being mounted between the spaced lates. p 6. A pellet gun as in claim 5 in which said straight sides are provided by opposed angular surfaces on the inner surfaces of the spaced plates and the frame being mounted on the casing at an angle.

7. A pellet gun as in claim 6 in which the cam means has a face, the pellet feed means includes a feed lever mounted on the frame for lateral movement with respect to the trough, a head carried by the feed lever located between the magazine and the pellet support, and having a gap, and feed lever operating means including a spring and a feed lever cam carried by the face of the cam means.

8. A pellet gun as in claim 7 in which the gap is formed by a bent down projection forwardly of the pellet support, and the projection 'being adjacent to the pellet Support to form a front stop.

9. A pellet gun as in claim 7 in which the mounting means includes a pivot having a hole therethrough, and the cam means including a shaft extending through the hole in the pivot for the mounting means.

10. A pellet gun as in claim 1 including a hammer stop carried by the frame in a position to be engaged by the hammer when released by the cam means and in a position to stop the hammer immediately on impact.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,310,613 Gilbert July 22, 1919 2,043,677 Salomon June 9, 1936 2,473,272 Blake June 14, 1949 

1. A PELLET GUN COMPRISING A CASING, MOUNTING MEANS MOUNTING THE CASING FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT ON AT LEAST ONE OF A VERTICAL AXIS AND A HORIZONTAL AXIS, A FRAME CARRIED BY THE CASING HAVING A PELLET SUPPORT, THE PELLET SUPPORT BEING A TROUGH HAVING STRAIGHT SIDES INCLINED UPWARDLY IN THE DIRECTION OF PELLET PROJECTION, A HAMMER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON THE FRAME AND HAVING AN IMPACT SURFACE AND MOVABLE TO AND FROM IMPACT POSITION ON THE PELLET SUPPORT TO HIT A PELLET; THE IMPACT SURFACE HAVING AN ANGLE SLIGHTLY GREATER THAN 90* WITH RESPECT TO THE FORWARD END OF THE TROUGH, THE IMPACT SURFACE PROVIDING THE SOLE MEANS FOR THE DIRECTION OF FLIGHT OF THE PELLET, A BACKSTOP CARRIED BY THE FRAME TO RETAIN THE PELLET IN IMPACT POSITION ON THE SUPPORTING MEANS; OPERATING MEANS CONNECTED WITH THE HAMMER INCLUDING A SPRING CONNECTED WITH THE HAMMER AND PROPELLING THE SAME TO IMPACT POSITION AND ROTARY CAM MEANS ENGAGING THE HAMMER TO PROPEL THE SAME AWAY FROM IMPACT POSITION AND RELEASE THE HAMMER; AND FEED MEANS TO FEED ONE PELLET AT A TIME TO THE PELLET SUPPORT. 